Cabrera, who went 0-6 with a 6.00 ERA in 15 games (nine starts) for the D-backs and Nationals, elected to become a free agent rather than accept the assignment. Romero, who batted .248 with one homer, 18 RBIs and two steals in 145 at-bats, holds the same rights. Oeltjen made a big splash with a .500 average and three homers in his first five games for the D-backs in August before finishing with a .243 average.

Romero has seen an upswing in playing time lately but has yet to parlay his additional at-bats into a spot on many fantasy rosters. The 25-year-old right-handed swinger stitched together a seven-game hitting streak Aug. 19-26, but only collected a single hit in each one of those contests.

The demotion is a stunning reversal for a player who in 2007 became the first rookie in ML history to collect at least 30 homers and 25 steals. Last season, he hit .278 after the All-Star break and finished with 22 homers and 85 RBIs. Young will likely return to the Diamondbacks in early September, but he's got a lot of straightening-out to do -- he struck out once every 3.3 at-bats with Arizona, and his previously potent pop had dwindled significantly, as his .194 average and .359 slugging percentage indicate. Taking his place in center field will be Gerardo Parra, with Trent Oeltjen playing left and Alex Romero in right. The 26-year-old Ryal, who batted .290 with 17 homers and 70 RBIs for Reno, will be used in a backup role.

Romero's superstar performance came on the same day Justin Upton hit the 15-day DL, increasing his chances of earning more playing time in the near future. The 25-year-old hasn't shown much of a power stroke during his brief time in the bigs, but he could deliver his share of runs and steals if he sticks in the starting lineup.

Upton, who’s batting .301 with 20 home runs, 66 RBIs and 16 steals, left Wednesday’s game in the ninth inning after suffering the injury. Gerardo Parra and Alex Romero both could see more at-bats in Upton’s absence, but Oeltjen may be the most intriguing option. The 26 year-old has never played in the Majors, but hit .293/.346/.798 with 18 homers and 48 steals in 330 Triple-A games over the past three seasons.

There hasn't been an abundance of positive news for Romero, although his sample size is quite small considering he's played in just six games, four of which have been starts. In that time, he has two multi-hit efforts and one extra-base hit. He showed respectable stolen base ability with an excellent ability to hit for batting average the last couple years, so his progression is one to track for NL-only formats.

Romero, just promoted from Triple-A Reno on June 26 to take the place of the injured Eric Byrnes, is 3-for-8 so far with the D-backs. Before his callup the 25-year-old right fielder was fourth in the Pacific Coast League with a .348 average, and had knocked in 47 runs. He's a career .237 hitter in 81 big league games.

The outfielder had been raking in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League with a .348 batting average and an .879 OPS in 70 contests. He appeared in 78 games last year for the D-backs, hitting .230 with one homer, 12 RBIs and four steals. Arizona's outfield depth had been compromised after Eric Byrnes went on the 15-day DL June 25 with a fractured left hand.

Catcher Miguel Montero and outfielder Eric Byrnes will be the primary bench players for the D-backs with Tony Clark, Augie Ojeda, Josh Wilson and Alex Romero potentially rounding out the roster. The D-backs hitters swung and missed way too much in 2008. Only the Marlins struck out more times as a team, and Arizona third baseman Mark Reynolds set a Major League record with 204 whiffs. Outfielder Young was fourth in the league with 165. The D-backs have worked hard this spring on bringing those numbers down. Their young core of position players like Upton, Young and Reynolds take the next step like shortstop Stephen Drew did in 2008. If that happens, the offense figures to be much improved from last year, when it ranked 10th in the NL.

This trade certainly boosts the D-backs' chances of claiming the National League West title, though the fantasy fallout will be minimal. Dunn will be moving from one hitter-friendly ballpark to another, and he should receive more or less the same level of protection in Arizona (20th in ML with 534 R) as he did in Cincinnati (22nd in ML with 510 R). Of course, the hulking slugger could get a boost from the move to a contender and the end of the trade rumors that have followed him for years, so he could lift that .233 average to a more respectable level. Buck, 23, is still working his way back into top shape after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2007. In 10 games (nine starts) for Class A South Bend and Class A Visalia this year, he went a combined 1-5 with a 3.55 ERA and a 28/11 K/BB ratio in 50 2/3 innings.

Romero had been just 1-for-11 before busting out of the mini-slump with a big night Friday. The right fielder is batting .265 with 11 RBIs, 11 runs and three steals in 113 at-bats this year.

Romero's hit safely in three straight games and five of his last seven, drilling a triple and a homer with three RBIs in that span. Still, the rookie outfielder will have to do some serious work on his .244 average to merit much attention outside of deeper NL-only formats.

A night to remember for the rookie outfielder, who's batting .246 with six extra-base hits and seven RBIs through his first 65 at-bats with the big boys.

A nice night for Romero, who compiled the first multi-hit effort of his young career. That said, the rookie outfielder is hitting .255 with four doubles and five RBIs in his first 47 big league at-bats, and clearly possesses minimal fantasy value until he begins to see quasi regular at-bats.

D-backs manager Bob Melvin didn't ease his left fielder back into action, as Byrnes was atop Arizona's batting order. To make room for Byrnes, outfielder Alex Romero was optioned to Triple-A Tucson. Byrnes battled tears in his hamstrings since the day before the start of Spring Training and finally gave into the pain on May 27, when the club placed him on the DL. Byrnes spent June 19-21 with Class A Visalia and though he went only 1-for-12, he did get to the point where he could run without pain.